Premature newborns' need for transfusions declines with ESA use

Treating preterm infants with an erythropoiesis-stimulating agent such as darbepoetin alfa can help decrease the use of red blood cell transfusions, according to a study in the journal Pediatrics. Infants given the drugs in a trial at high-altitude hospitals were given fewer transfusions. Fifty-nine percent of infants administered darbepoetin alfa and 52% of infants given erythropoietin did not receive transfusions, compared with 38% for the placebo group.